And Away We Go

So, Thursday night, 49ers against the Cowboys. Two franchises in search of their former glory.

Best guess is that neither team will be reaching the Super Bowl this year, but one or both might make the playoffs. Or neither.

The starters probably won’t play very long, but we should finally get a look at the Niners’ top four draft picks, Mike McGlinchey, Dante Pettis, Fred Warner, and Tarvarius Moore. We’ll also see what our new FA RB Jerick McKinnon. We won’t see our other big name FA, Dickhead Sherman, who pulled his hamstring last week.

The defense will be mostly unchanged from last year and won’t strike fear into many opponents. Warner has looked good in camp, but he won’t be a starter. Arik Armstead is injured again and Solomon Thomas is still not a pass rush threat. Deforest Buckner is the only stud on the D-line, but he can’t do it all by himself.

We should, however, at last see the return of a dynamic and scary offense this year. Not in the game against Dallas, of course, which will feature CJ Beathard at QB for most of the game. Come September, though, this is a team that will be tough on opposing defensive coordinators.

That’s assuming the offseason book written by these DCs on Jimmy Garoppolo is a dinky little thing that wouldn’t scare a flea. Dallas QB Dak Prescott had a far less impressive second season than he did in his rookie year, and that’s a common tale for young QBs in this league. You can bet Rams’ DC Wade Phillips has pored over Jimmy’s tape from last year and has a book that will be much larger and more sophisticated than the tomes written by other DCs.

But that story won’t be told until September. For now, we’ll have to content ourselves with re-training our butts for three hour vegetation sessions of exquisite anxiety, exhilaration, pain, anger, and all the other emotions that go into the noble art of the professional couch potato.

Andy already has previews on NYG, DEN, TB, and CHI that are on the season schedule.

2. A defining trait of Shanahan’s scheme: base personnel. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk played 53 percent of the snaps in games that Garoppolo started. A fullback allows you to change the formation’s strength and create new gaps in the run game post-snap. To account for this, the defense must commit a safety to the box, which renders its coverages predictable. Those predictable coverages are a big reason why Shanahan throws the ball so often out of base personnel.

3. Another defining trait of Shanahan’s scheme is pre-snap motion, especially involving backs and tight ends. Among other benefits, pre-snap motion forces the defense to reveal its coverage, which helps the QB play fast.

“The 49ers organization’s tribute to Clark will include:
◦All 49ers players will wear “87” helmet decals throughout the season
◦Levi’s Stadium field bunting will pay tribute to Clark during all 49ers games
◦The nationally televised game on October 21st against the visiting Los Angeles Rams will feature a number of tributes to Clark’s legacy:
◦The game will be highlighted by the unveiling of statues depicting “The Catch” outside of Levi’s® Stadium. The 350-pound statues of Dwight Clark and Joe Montana will be placed exactly 23 yards apart, just as the two 49ers were during the famous play. The representation of Clark, with his hands outstretched, will extend 11 feet in the air.
◦During the game, the playing field will feature an “87” marking in the north end zone commemorating the location of “The Catch”.
◦The contest will also serve as the 49ers annual Alumni Game and, therefore, funds will be raised throughout the weekend to support Clark’s charity of choice, the Golden Heart Fund. The fund was established in 2016 to support 49ers alumni in need of financial, medical, psychological or emotional support.”

The Panthers traded Benjamin to the Bills last season, and the receiver said earlier this week it was good riddance to Carolina. He told The Athletic he never felt a fit with the Panthers, specifically with Newton.

“I should’ve just been drafted by somebody else. I should’ve never went to Carolina. Truly, I just think Carolina was bad for me,” Benjamin said. “If you would’ve put me with any other quarterback, let’s be real, you know what I’m saying? Any other accurate quarterback like [Aaron] Rodgers or Eli Manning or Big Ben [Roethlisberger] — anybody! — quarterbacks with knowledge, that know how to place a ball and give you a better chance to catch the ball. It just felt like I wasn’t in that position.”

I guess there are a couple of schools of thought in preparing these guys for the season. I think there should be a some tackling and hitting in TC. I think the nutcracker is a little over the top but I think there should be some kind of in-between. Maybe then they won’t get hurt just falling down. The players will weed themselves out they have to be tough enough to stay on the field at least for a little while. I like the way KS played the players. Got to see a lot of some of the new ones.

The best news for me was that the two guys I wanted to see came up big. Richie James and Jullian Taylor both had good games ! It looks like we’ve added two guys who will give us some real depth at WR and D-line !

7) Pettis: I really like the guy and he’s a really bright kid, but yesterday there were times he looked lost. Clear miscommunications or bad throws/routes on several occasions. I don’t know if it was on CJ or on him but I tend to think its him as he’s spent far less time in the offense. As I said, he’s a bright kind so I’m sure he’ll get it down and he was able to show something with that deep route, but IMO it looks like he’s got some work to do.

Beathard having his 5 or 6 of his passes batted down or deflected at the line of scrimmage is unacceptable and shows a flaw in Beathard’s mechanics that needs fixing. Beathard needs to find clean throwing lanes and batted balls are turnovers waiting to happen.

I don’t remember CJ having that problem last year maybe he did and I just don’t remember. It is something that he will have to correct. Except for the injuries the game was played just like a first pre-season game should be. Hard to really glean anything out of it.

Dear Abby, My husband hasn’t worked for the last 14 years. All he does is get dressed in the morning and hop in his fancy car to visit his cronies. I know he’s cheated on me many times with young girls who could be his granddaughters. I know this because he brags about this to me. He smokes fancy cigars and drinks the most expensive liquor day and night. We sleep in separate beds because he tells me he knows I’m a lesbian and besides that, my varicose veins and fat behind turns him off. > > Should I clobber him with something heavy, or should I just leave him alone? Your advice would be appreciated. > > Sincerely, > Mad as Hell > > >

Dear Mad as Hell, > > You don’t have to take that kind of treatment from any man. I suggest you pack oyour bags and move out a.s.a.p.! Don’t resort to violence and try to act more like a lady. > > Remember, you were almost elected President of the United States, so try acting like one. > >